Lady Yael

"Let's dream a little bigger"

  Lady Yael was a close friend of the angels Zariel and Lulu, a general in the Zarielite Crusade of the 10th century, and the of High Rider Olanthius. Though her role in history would be eventually reduced to that of Olanthius's love interest and the cause for the Charge of the Hellriders, Yael was in fact a prolific fighter and leader in her own right. Though she died while protecting the Sword of Zariel in Avernus, her soul remained bound to it and the holy fortress that protected it, waiting for someone righteous to claim it and redeem her fallen friend.    

History

  Yael was born in the late 9th century in the village of Idyllglen as a farmer's daughter, though she always had a martial streak. In the early 10th century, when Yael was a young woman, a group of bandit ogres descended from the Troll Hills, threatening the settlements along the Winding Water. Yael rallied the villagers of Idyllglen into a militia, and the villagers prayed for salvation from the angel that had saved them a century before from demons. In 1912, that angel, Zariel, answered their call and arrived on the Material Plane with her friend and companion Lulu in tow. Yael took the angels' arrival in stride and worked with Zariel and Lulu to repel the ogre bandits, striking up a fast friendship with them that seemed to end all too early when the two celestials departed that same year.   Inspired by Zariel, Yael reformed the militia of Idyllglen into a regional peacekeeping force, adopting for her organization the symbol of two suns, representing her two celestial friends.   In 918, Yael was suprised by the return of Zariel and Lulu, who were themselves inspired by Yael and her forces, and the Zariel had a proposal for Yael to reform her peacekeeping force into a grand crusade that will march into the Abyss itself and turn the tide of the Blood War. Yael agreed.   For the next several years, the Zarielite Crusade grew in numbers and scope. In 919, the crusade recruited High Rider Olanthius of Elturel, commander of the Elturian Riders, and Haruman, Lord Knight of the Far Hills, to serve alongside Yael as the crusade's three generals. The crusade's headquarters was then relocated to Elturel, and the three generals, Zariel, and Lulu formed an extremely close bond. Yael and Olanthius also fell in love with one another, though the needs of the crusade prevented them from formalizing that love in marriage.   In 920, catching wind of Zariel's plan, the demon lord Yeenoghu launched an attack on the settlements of the Winding Water to bait out the crusade to attack him. Outside of Idyllglen, the crusade and the demon's gnoll forces clashed in the famed Charge of the Hellriders. However, Yeenoghu broke through the crusader's lines to capture Yael, where he dragged her through a portal. Incensed, Zariel and her forces followed, finding themselves taken to Avernus in the Nine Hells.   Yael was able to break free of her capture and fought to rejoin the other generals, but Yeenoghu's plan to destroy the crusaders by forcing a fight against Hell's infernal legions succeeded. Afraid and recognizing their predicament, a large swath of the crusaders, led by Jander Sunstar, deserted through the portal to Hell, which closed behind them. With no other option, the crusaders charged against the devils that had arrived to stop them and assumed that the crusaders' arrival was a planned invasion. Despite the crusaders' destruction of an infernal legion that had arrived to pacfiy them, a second force arrived, slaying nearly all the remaining mortals. Zariel, defeated and fearing her own moral weakness in the face of such loss, gave her sword to Yael to protect and imbued within it a piece of her own celestial soul. Yael and Lulu fled the battlefield together as Zariel was nearly overwhelmed by a horde of devils.   Alone and trapped in Avernus, Yael and Lulu attempted to find a way back to the Material Plane by following the River Styx, but were driven back by demons and devils. The two grew more haggard and exhausted, and Yael formed a celestial pact with Lulu to imbue her with the strength to keep going. Finally, in 921, Yael and Lulu found themselves surrounded by demons that desired Zariel's sword. In desperation, Yael prayed to every god she could for protection, and Lathander answered, building around the sword an alabaster fortress to protect it, fueled by Yael's own life, killing her in the process. The very landscape of Avernus itself resisted this holy intrusion, and the fortress was enveloped in a protective cyst. Inside, Yael's soul remained, eternally guarding her friend's sword until someone worthy could claim it.   Lulu was also enveloped by the cyst, but became dislodged centuries later. In 1498, Lulu returned to Yael's resting place with the Lost Star Detectives, a group of heroes that were attempting to save the city of Elturel and redeem Zariel, who had become the Archduke of Avernus. Yael allowed the sword to test the members of the group, and Alesine Zadava was found worthy. Alesine claimed the sword and took into herself the piece of Zariel's essence inside. Yael's spirit exchanged final words with Lulu and then departed to the afterlife, finally at rest.    

The Legend of Lady Yael

  In the centuries following the Charge of the Hellriders, Yael's role and the nature of the conflict became obscured as a result of teh centuries passing and the fleeing Hellriders attempting to obscure their cowardice. By the 1400s, the history of Yael became the following:   Lady Yael lived at some point between the 9th and 10th centuries. Histories are conflicted on whether or not she was a Hellrider or not, but it is well-known that she was the lover of Olanthius, the High Rider of Elturel.   One year, while Olanthius was on campaign with his Riders, Nothius, a disguised devil lord, made his way to Elturel and enslaved the heart and soul of Lady Yael. When Nothius heard Olanthius was returning, the devil fled with Yael in tow. Olanthius and his Riders gave chase, ultimately engaging Nothius is a frenzied battle, which ended when the devil revealed his identity and escaped into the Nine Hells with Yael.   Olanthius and his soldiers pursued the devil lord across the blasted plains of Avernus itself. At last, the Riders of Elturel met the armies of Hell. The Riders defeated one of the fabled blood legions and Yael was reunited with Olanthius, but as they rode back towards the portal home a second and even larger legion threatened to cut them off.   Olanthius knew the only hope of escape was if this legion was delayed. He asked for volunteers to accompany him, and all the Riders did so. Therefore lots were drawn to determine the lucky few who would ride one last time at the side of their lord. Olanthius begged Lady Yael to fly to safety, but she, too, chose to ride into battle at his side. In the face of the Riders’ charge, the legion of Avernus trembled and buckled… but did not break. Olanthius and Yael perished on the Avernian plains. It is said that where they fell in a final, martial embrace, a spring of holy water sprung up that was poison to the devils of that land.   Their sacrifice, however, bought the time the other Riders needed to escape from Hell. Overcome with grief at the loss of their glorious leader and his love, they returned to the city. Their valor was never forgotten, and from that day forward the Riders of Elturel were known as the Hellriders.